RedLegendary Creature — Tiefling BarbarianKarlach, Fury of Avernus
Mana value5Rank#1,030
The Commander
Whenever you attack, if it's the first combat phase of the turn, untap all attacking creatures. They gain first strike until end of turn. After this phase, there is an additional combat phase.
Choose a Background (You can have a Background as a second commander.)
Guide
Gameplan
Karlach turns every first combat into two combats by untapping your attackers and granting first strike, then tacking on an extra combat phase. You curve out aggressive creatures, swing in, untap and swing again, and use the Background slot to push damage, draw, or evasion. Most games end by stacking damage triggers and extra combats into a lethal alpha strike.
Strengths
- Built-in double combat doubles attack-trigger value (extort, blink-on-attack, sagas, exert payoffs)
- First strike makes attacks safer and lets your team trade up
- Untapping attackers enables tap-to-attack abilities and pseudo-vigilance
- Background slot adds deckbuilding flexibility and a second color of strategy via partner-like Backgrounds
Weaknesses
- Mono-red (plus Background) is light on card advantage and interaction
- Relies on connecting in combat—board wipes and Fog effects set you back hard
- No protection in the command zone; she's a removal magnet
- Extra combats do nothing if your attackers are blocked or removed before second swing
Key Cards
- Aggravated Assault — Pairs with mana doublers like Neheb to chain near-infinite combats Karlach already enables.
- Combat Celebrant — Exert grants yet another combat phase, stacking with Karlach for triple combats.
- Neheb, the Eternal — Generates huge red mana in second main from combat damage to fuel repeatable extra combats.
- Moraug, Fury of Akoum — Each landfall in combat gives another combat phase plus a power pump, snowballing with Karlach.
- Reconnaissance — Lets you remove attackers from combat after damage, dodging blocks while keeping triggers.
- Wulfgar of Icewind Dale — Doubles your attack and combat triggers, amplifying every Karlach swing.
Upgrade Path
Pick a Background that adds card draw or evasion (Raised by Giants for trample/Voltron, or one granting menace) and add mana doublers like Mana Echoes and Caged Sun to enable Aggravated Assault loops. Tighten the curve with efficient haste threats and protection (Heroic Intervention substitute via Boots/Greaves, Deflecting Swat) and add card advantage like Outpost Siege and impulse draw to fight red's grind problem. Finishers like Hellkite Charger and Godo, Bandit Warlord give redundant infinite-combat lines.
Core Cards
The most-played cards for this commander, built from aggregated deck data (the Mythic Graph). Build public decks to seed it.
Win Conditions
- ▸Alpha strike across two-plus combat phases for lethal damage
- ▸Infinite combats via Aggravated Assault + Neheb/mana doubler
- ▸Commander damage from a single buffed evasive attacker hitting twice
- ▸Combat trigger snowball (tokens, burn, drain) overwhelming the table
Archetypes
- Aggro / Voltron — Karlach's untap and extra combat make a single buffed threat hit twice for lethal commander damage.
- Extra Combats Combo — Aggravated Assault plus mana doublers loops infinite combats off her free first combat.
- Attack-Trigger Tokens — Doubling combats doubles 'whenever you attack' and 'attacks' payoffs across a wide board.
- Big Mana Beatdown — Neheb and Moraug convert combat into mana and lands into more combats for an explosive finish.
Combos
No combos found for this commander on Commander Spellbook.
Related Commanders
Same color identity (R), by popularity.
